Mayoral runoff early voting startsRussellville residents who want to decide their next mayor may start voting at 8 a.m. Tuesday at the Pope County Election Headquarters on East Main Street. Early voting continues from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays through Nov. 24. Polls will be open in Russellville from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 25. Russellville’s next mayor will be either current Alderman Randy Horton or former Mayor Tyrone Williamson. They garnered the most votes followi...

Bill Clinton says he's surprised by midterm loses LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Former President Bill Clinton says Democrats lacked a "national advertising campaign" in the recent midterm elections and was surprised that many Senate races were not closer. Clinton says in an interview with Politico that voters who were opposed to Democrats felt more strongly about the election than those who supported his party. He says many people couldn't hear what he called "a fairly coherent economic message." Clinto...

At Clinton center, the past and the future collide LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Bill Clinton always said presidential campaigns must be about the future, but Hillary Rodham Clinton's potential White House bid is bound to bring up the past. How the former secretary of state navigates her husband's triumphs and travails during the 1990s could figure prominently in a possible 2016 race for the presidency. In a touch of legacy shaping, Bill Clinton and his onetime White House advisers highlighted his record...

Hutchinson not keeping Tennille at economic agency LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas Gov.-elect Asa Hutchinson says he's not keeping the state's chief economic development official when he takes office next year. The incoming Republican governor on Friday said he had decided not to keep Grant Tennille as the Arkansas Economic Development Commission's director. Hutchinson, who defeated Democrat and fellow ex-congressman Mike Ross in the Nov. 4 election, said his transition steering committee is alrea...

Governor reaffirms intent to pardon son LITTLE ROCK (AP) — The office of Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe on Friday reaffirmed his decision to pardon his son in a felony marijuana case amid complaints that he is showing favoritism. Beebe, who leaves office in January because of term limits, said this week his next round of intended pardons, due in December, would include one for his son Kyle, who was convicted in 2003 of felony marijuana possession with intent to deliver. The state Parole B...

Incoming Senate president to start early LITTLE ROCK (AP) — The Arkansas Senate voted Friday to allow its incoming president to take the reins early, as lawmakers divvied up committee assignments and began preparing for next year's legislative session. Sen. Jonathan Dismang was elected by acclamation to begin work immediately as Senate president, a title he hadn't expected to take until the session begins in January. Dismang was elected to replace former Sen. Michael Lamoureux as the...

Hutchinson backs Webb to stay on as GOP chairman LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas Gov.-elect Asa Hutchinson is backing Doyle Webb's bid for a fourth term as chairman of the state Republican Party. The incoming Republican governor endorsed Webb, who is running for another two-year term when GOP state committee meets next month. Webb was first elected state Republican Party chairman in 2008. Webb has chaired the party as it's made dramatic gains in a state that had once been a Democratic holdout in...

What Arkansans should know for health care signup Tens of thousands of Arkansans are expected to take part in the open enrollment period under the federal Affordable Care Act that begins this weekend. Open enrollment begins Saturday and lasts until Feb. 15. Residents can enroll in the health marketplace and renew or change their plan options during this period. The state says more than 44,000 residents enrolled in the health care marketplace for 2014 plans. The nonprofit Arkansas Advocates fo...

House members gather at state Capitol LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas House members gathered at the state Capitol for an organizational caucus three days after the general election that saw Republicans expand their legislative majorities. House members picked their seats and made committee selections on Friday, the Southwest Times Record reported Saturday. New members drew lots to determine seniority in advance of the legislative session that begins Jan. 12. Tuesday's election saw 64 ...

Highway officials seek more employees LITTLE ROCK (AP) — The Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department is looking for a few good truck drivers. The agency is hosting a job fair in Little Rock on Nov. 14 that will focus on the district that includes Garland, Hot Spring, Lonoke, Prairie, Pulaski and Saline counties. Agency Director Scott Bennett says the agency is in the process of hiring about 200 new employees statewide but has a critical immediate need for truck driver...

GOP lawmaker says he'll challenge Senate president LITTLE ROCK (AP) — A Republican state senator said Friday he's challenging the election of the chamber's incoming leader, highlighting a rift within the GOP-led Arkansas Legislature after the party's massive gains in the midterm election. State Sen. Gary Stubblefield of Branch said he'll challenge fellow Republican Sen. Jonathan Dismang's election as Senate president for the 90th General Assembly, which begins in January. Dismang, R-Beebe, was...

Mark Simpson, Billy Helms face election runoffCLARKSVILLE — Mark Simpson and Billy Helms will face off in a Nov. 25 runoff for Clarksville mayor. Simpson and Helms brought in the most votes in Tuesday’s midterm, but neither got the required 50 percent to avoid a runoff. Simpson received nearly 45 percent of the three-man race with 829 votes, while Helms collected nearly 40 percent with 731 votes, according to final unofficial results listed on the Arkansas Secretary of State’s website. Je...

State employees to receive pay raise LITTLE ROCK (AP) — More than 28,000 Arkansas state workers are set to receive a 1 percent pay raise that had been delayed. Department of Finance and Administration Director Richard Weiss told state agency directors in a memo Thursday that a cost-of-living adjustment will appear in employees' Nov. 28 paychecks. Weiss says in the memo that Gov. Mike Beebe asked finance officials to review the performance of the state's economy and revenue collec...

Plea hearing set for former treasurer LITTLE ROCK (AP) — A change-of-plea hearing has been scheduled for a former Arkansas state treasurer accused of misspending campaign funds on personal items. Martha Shoffner was convicted earlier this year on 14 bribery and extortion charges and awaits sentencing in that case. She was scheduled to go to trial in December on separate mail fraud charges accusing her of misspending $9,800 in campaign funds on clothing, cosmetics and other persona...

Health department sets flu shot clinics LITTLE ROCK (AP) — The Arkansas Department of Health has scheduled vaccine clinics for areas throughout the state as the flu season begins to ramp up. The flu shot clinics had been pushed back this fall because there was a delay in the shipment of the vaccines from manufacturers. The clinics are now set to take place in November and December at cities and towns throughout Arkansas. The drive-thru clinic at the Pope County Fairgrounds in Russel...

Hutchinson: No Medicaid decision until January LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas Gov.-elect Asa Hutchinson says he won't make a decision about whether to expand the state's compromise Medicaid expansion until late January at the earliest. Hutchinson told reporters Thursday he's continuing to review the "private option" and how the state will pay for its eventual share of the cost before deciding whether to back its reauthorization. Under the private option, Arkansas is using federal funds to pur...

Steuber wins by 3 votes The Pope County Election Commission confirmed during a called meeting Thursday that Garland Steuber will return to the Russellville City Council. Unofficial totals reviewed Thursday showed that Steuber defeated challenger Deborah DeJohnette by three votes, 556-553, for the Ward 4, Position 2 seat. Tuesday’s unofficial results indicated Steuber led DeJohnette by a mere two votes, 561-559, but three absentee ballots and a few provisional ballots...

Gilkey re-elected, breaks recordBill Gilkey made history Tuesday when he was re-elected for a ninth term as Yell County Sheriff. "Now he will be the longest-running sheriff in Yell County," an official with the Yell County Clerk's Office said. Buford Compton previously held the record, serving as Yell County Sheriff for 16 years. Compton was elected eight times to the two-year-term position. Gilkey was first elected sheriff in 1999. He will begin his ninth term on Jan. 1, 20...